Shrimp Cocktail
1. Boil water
2. Put shrimp in
3. Take shrimp out
What could be easier, right? Yet the perfect shrimp cocktail eludes me. I have much to live up to: My dad, Marv, has "the gift." Shrimp bow before him. Even people who've sworn off shellfish swoon when confronted with his: the right amount of bite and flavor. The sauce zesty but not spicy.
So this time I swore I'd do it right. I bought the exact same shrimp he buys: the $40 bag of frozen shrimp from Costco. I boiled the water. I put in shrimp. I waited for the boil to roll...the shrimp to curl...to gain that perfect hue of pink.
In the end: pretty good, but not my dad's. The texture was almost there, but not quite. Something was missing with the flavor. My son pronounced it superior, but this is from a boy who lives on 59 cent burritoes. It's the closest I've ever come, however, and for that, I'm happy.
